To:
STOP-THE-AFRICAN-SEAL-HUNT
Along the oldest desert coastline in the world and the
least populated country on earth has raged a
non-traditional foreign inspired slaughter which has become
known as the 'Last Baby Seal Hunt on Earth'. It has been
this way since 1940. So cruel and against the laws of
nature and every known modern method of harvesting of a
living wild animal. That it was banned in the USA in 1972
and the EU in 1983 and stopped by all the world's remaining
sealing countries of Canada, Greenland, Norway or Russia in
1987.
The United Nations Environmental Protection agency through
its United Nations Convention on the International Trade in
Endangered Species (CITES) arm has controlled its 100%
exported trade since 1977 in South Africa and since 1991 in
Namibia - Cape fur seal pups still remains the only
Appendix II protected species to be exported and imported
legally around the world.
Found nowhere else on earth, except along the coastline of
southern Africa. Although commercial sealing of this
species in its living breeding natural habitat - islands,
has between 1486 and 1900, already driven this species
close to extinction - and 98% of its former breeding,
birthing and nursing habitat remains extinct. South Africa
only stopped its sealing practice in 1990.
Namibia now remains the only country on earth to round up
nursing baby seals still suckling on their mother's milk,
driving them in-land away from the safety of the sea, and
as they attempt to flee alongside their mothers back to its
safety are clubbed and stabbed to death by rows of as many
as 100 part-time migrant workers - everyday between July 1
and November 15, each year. Vomiting up their mother's milk
as they slowly die. On just two mainland seal colonies
where 75% of this species unnaturally remains. Where the
Namibian government grants 3 sealing concession holders the
right to club these protected wildlife seals to death.
Once totalling over 16 million or 3% of the world's current
cat and dog populations. The Cape fur seals are today 5 -
10% of their former population. Each year between 50 - 100%
of its new-born are rounded up as they reach the age of
7-months and 15 kg's in weight and are clubbed to death
viciously until dead. Millions upon millions have been
slaughtered, not in this traditional age-old method, not by
out of work fishermen, but in a method adapted from
foreigners, who ventured to these shores not so long ago.
This region was once the most productive fisheries in the
world. Within a decade the commercial harvest of fish
species dropped from 1.387 million tons to 45 000 tons or
3%. With it caused the start of mass abortions and
starvation of this species of seal - where in 1988, 1994,
1995, 1996, 2000 and 2001 - saw between one third to one
half of this species starve to death each year.
The pelts of these baby fur seals is the most prized
product of this species, its average traded international
price is less than one USD dollar. Described also as the
cruellest seal hunt on earth, it is also the most wasteful
with 63% of the weight of these pups and 75% of the weight
of these bulls, shot mainly for their genitals for the far
east trade, is discarded - unless sold as cheap fish-meal
to the livestock or pet-food industries at .30 cents a kg.
Although this species has declined over 50% in the last
decade and whose population is today lower than it was in
1982. The Namibian 2006 Sealing quota of 85 000 pups and
5000 bulls, the largest on record. Will see a total baby
seal pup genocide of this species this year.
By adding your signature to this petition, you are voicing
your international right to a protected marine environment
and in so doing are asking Francois Hugo of Seal Alert-SA
to do whatever is legally required to -
Stop-The-African-Seal-Hunt.
For the Seals
Francois Hugo Seals
Seal Alert-SA
Sincerely,
The Undersigned
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